Mark Dankberg is Chairman of the Board and Executive Chairman of Viasat, Inc. He co-founded the Company in 1986, and held the position of CEO until he became Executive Chairman in November 2020.As Executive Chairman, Mark focuses on advancing the strategic technology and business direction of the Company, as well as shapes the national and global space and broadband regulatory environments that are critical to Viasat’s global strategy. Under his leadership as CEO, Viasat has consistently been one of America’s fastest growing technology companies, and has been recognized multiple times by leading business and industry publications including BusinessWeek, Fast Company, Forbes, Fortune, DefenseNews, SpaceNews, and Washington Technology for its leadership.
Mark is an acknowledged industry expert in aerospace, defense, and satellite communications, and is the leading visionary for a new generation of high-capacity satellite systems. He has co-authored several military standards on satellite networking, and holds a number of patents in communications and satellite networking technologies. He has participated on Department of Defense advisory panels and was invited to testify before a Congressional committee on high technology growth companies and IPOs.
Mark Dankberg is Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Viasat, Inc. He co-founded the company in 1986.
As CEO, Mark focuses on advancing the strategic technology and business direction of Viasat. He is responsible for the executive and operational leadership of the company, with an emphasis on building and growing a customer-centric organization that will continue to deliver compelling global services and products.
Under his leadership, Viasat has consistently been one of America’s fastest growing technology companies, and has been recognized multiple times by leading business and industry publications including BusinessWeek, Fast Company, Forbes, Fortune, DefenseNews, SpaceNews, and Washington Technology for its leadership.
Mark is an acknowledged industry expert in aerospace, defense, and satellite communications, and is the leading visionary for a new generation of high-capacity satellite systems. He has co-authored several military standards on satellite networking, and holds a number of patents in communications and satellite networking technologies. He has participated on Department of Defense advisory panels and was invited to testify before a Congressional committee on high technology growth companies and IPOs.
Mark has received a number of awards for his industry and business leadership:
- 2022 San Diego Business Journal’s SD500 Leaders
- 2022 Asia-Pacific Satellite Communications Council (APSCC) Lifetime Achievement Award
- 2018 CONNECT Entrepreneur Hall of Fame
- 2017 LEAD San Diego Economic Opportunity Award
- 2017 Elected a Member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE)
- 2016 Director of the Year Honoree by San Diego-based Corporate Directors Forum
- 2015 Society of Satellite Professionals Hall of Fame
- 2013 San Diego Business Journal Most Admired CEO Founders Award
- 2013 Arthur C. Clarke Foundation Industry Innovator
- 2012 Visionary Executive of the Year, Satellite Markets and Research
- 2008 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Aerospace International Communications Award
- 2003 Satellite Industry Executive of the Year in 2003
- 2000 Entrepreneur of the Year in San Diego in 2000
Mark previously served as Executive Chairman of Viasat from November 2020 to June 2022, and as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer from Viasat’s inception in 1986 until November 2020. He currently serves on the board of directors of Lytx, Inc., a privately-held company that provides fleet safety management solutions, and was a founding member of the board of directors of the San Diego Telecom Council (now CommNexus), and served on the San Diego County Regional Economic Advisory Board.
Mark has been an invited speaker on communication technology, entrepreneurship, and executive management at several universities including Rice University, NYU, and University of California at San Diego. In addition, he has been invited to serve as a judge several times at the local and national levels for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year program.
Prior to founding Viasat, Mark was Assistant Vice President of M/A-COM Linkabit, a manufacturer of satellite telecommunications equipment, from 1979 to 1986, and Communications Engineer for Rockwell International Corporation from 1977 to 1979.
He earned B.S. EE and M.S. EE degrees from Rice University and is a member of the Rice University Electrical and Computer Engineering Hall of Fame.
